Currently, genomic nucleotide sequences of various organisms including humans are being rapidly determined, and the information on genomic nucleotide sequences is being accumulated in various databases. For example, currently in progress is the construction of a system that will enable various research institutes and researchers to utilize the information on genomic nucleotide sequences accumulated in databases through an information network such as the Internet.
At the same time, various activities such as researches for genomic drug discovery and analyses of genetic information have been actively conducted using nucleotide sequences contained in the above-mentioned information on genomic nucleotide sequences, and differences in nucleotide sequence among individual organisms represented by the single nucleotide polymorphism are attracting attention. In general, nucleotide sequence differences among individual organisms refer to a polymorphism, which is defined by existence of a predetermined nucleotide difference at a frequency of 1% or more in an individual species, and a variation, which is defined by a predetermined nucleotide difference of less than 1% in an individual species. In particular, known polymorphisms are an SNP (Single Nucleotide Polymorphism), in which there is one nucleotide difference among individual organisms; an insertion/deletion polymorphism, in which one to several tens of nucleotides (sometimes several thousands of nucleotides) are deleted or inserted; a VNTR (Variable Number of Tandem Repeat), in which the number of repetitions of a sequence comprising two to several tens of nucleotides as one unit varies; and a microsatellite polymorphism (a repetition sequence having about two to four nucleotides).
Such polymorphisms sometimes affect, for example, differences in amino acid sequences of proteins among individual organisms or differences in expression efficiency concerning predetermined genes among individual organisms. It is known that such influences cause, for example, differences in the morbidity rate of a predefined disease among individual organisms or differences in sensitiveness to predetermined medicaments among individual organisms.
In reality, however, the system for providing semantic information useful for each organism by making effective use of differences in nucleotide sequence-related information among a plurality of individual organisms, such as polymorphisms, is not yet constructed.